Baylor's Griner will return for senior year

Baylor's Griner to return next season

Baylor center Brittney Griner shoots between Notre Dame's Natalie Achonwa (left) and Markisha Wright during the women's title game Tuesday night. Griner said before the game that she is returning for her senior year.

DENVER — Brittney Griner made it clear, way in advance: No matter what happened Tuesday in the NCAA championship game against Notre Dame, she’s returning to Baylor for her senior season.

While most male college basketball stars of Griner’s caliber would have left for the NBA after their freshman year, the 6-foot-8 phenom will stay in school to earn her general studies degree in recreation.

“I’m staying, I made a commitment,” Griner said. “I’m going to stay here until my time’s up, so all the speculations of me leaving early are false.”

After hearing her star player say those words at the news conference Saturday, coach Kim Mulkey asked her to repeat it again, “a little louder so everyone could hear.”

Really, it’s not a huge shock that Griner will be headed back to Baylor.

Staying in school is the norm for marquee women’s college players. Diana Taurasi and Maya Moore played all four years. Candace Parker left Tennessee with a year of eligibility remaining, but she already had graduated when she was the top pick in the WNBA Draft in 2008.

One big reason: The money offered to female players, whether in the United States or even abroad, just isn’t on the same scale as what men can earn.

While women players would certainly appreciate better pay in the pro ranks, they are more likely to graduate. An annual report released by the University of Central Florida’s Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport found players from the women’s teams in the NCAA Tournament graduated at an overall rate of 89 percent, compared with 67 percent for the men.

Having players stick around also helps grow the women’s game.

And in fact, it’s not as easy for female players to leave early as it is for men, even if they want to. The WNBA has a much stricter code of eligibility for players than the NBA.

To play in the WNBA, a player must turn 22 during the year they are drafted, graduate from college or see their class finish its coursework during the three-month period following the draft. Or the player must be out of high school for four years.

“I think it’s a great rule,” Notre Dame coach Muffet McGraw said. “I think getting your education is the reason you go to college. I think that you want to come out with that degree so after your career ends at the old age of 30 or so you’re ready to go into the world and do something else. I think the money is so small that there isn’t the attraction that the men have to leave college and make that kind of money.”

While the top pick in the NBA could earn roughly $5 million dollars, the No. 1 pick in the WNBA makes about $48,000. The real financial windfall comes overseas for those players who choose to play in Russia or Turkey. Griner could potentially earn over $1 million.